A retrospective valuation puts a market value on a property at a date in the past. The date is fixed by an event: a death, the day a home first went to tenants, a transfer, or the day a tax regime began. The need for the figure usually surfaces years later, when the property sells or an accountant prepares a return, and by then the market has moved and the records have thinned out.

The figure a willing buyer and seller would have agreed then, on what was known then.

These are among the most common instructions the practice receives from accountants and private clients in Brisbane.

When a retrospective valuation is needed

  • Capital gains tax. The cost base of inherited property, the market value of a home on the date it first produced income, pre-CGT property brought into the system, and apportionments where records are missing.
  • Deceased estates. Market value at the date of death, for the executor’s statement of assets and the tax position that follows the property.
  • Related-party transfers and transfer duty. Market value at the date of a transfer between family members, into a trust or to a company, where the price agreed was never tested.
  • GST margin scheme. Where land was held before 1 July 2000 and is sold under the margin scheme, an approved valuation at that date can stand in place of the acquisition cost.

How a past market is reconstructed

A retrospective valuation is built the same way as a current one. Every input is taken back to the valuation date.

The property as it stood. Title records, council building approvals, dated aerial imagery, old listing photographs, tenancy agreements and insurance schedules establish what was physically there. A kitchen renovated in 2019 does not belong in a 2011 valuation.

The market as it stood. Queensland’s sales records run deep. Comparable sales that settled around the valuation date are identified, confirmed and analysed, and adjusted for differences in land, position, condition and market movement between sale dates.

No hindsight. The figure reflects what a willing buyer and a willing seller would have agreed at the date, on the information available at the date. A rezoning announced two years later, or a boom that followed, has no place in it.

What the report contains

  • the valuation date and the event that fixes it
  • the property as it stood at that date, and the records used to establish it
  • the comparable sales of that time, each analysed and adjusted
  • the definition of market value applied and the reasoning to the concluded figure
  • the valuer’s qualifications and registration with the Valuers Registration Board of Queensland

That is the content the ATO’s guidance on market valuations for tax purposes expects, and the report is written to stand on its own if questions arrive years after lodgment. For CGT the valuation date is set by the tax rules for inherited property, a former home now rented and pre-CGT assets, and your accountant confirms which rule applies.

Inspection, fee and timing

The property is inspected where access allows, and its condition at the valuation date is reconstructed from the records. Where the property has since been sold or renovated, the valuation rests on the records and the sales evidence. Send the address, the date or dates that need valuing and your accountant’s or solicitor’s details, and the practice replies with the scope, the timing and a fixed fee, usually the same day. Quotes are free. Reports are usually delivered 5 to 8 working days from inspection, and urgent timeframes are by arrangement.

The CGT timeline check shows whether a situation commonly calls for a retrospective valuation. To arrange one, request a valuation or call 07 3130 0723.

Common questions

How far back can a property be valued?

As far as the sales records support. Queensland’s records run deep, and CGT work can call for a value as far back as 20 September 1985.

Can a property be valued retrospectively if it has been renovated or sold?

Yes. The property as it stood at the valuation date is established from title records, building approvals, dated aerial imagery, old listing photographs and similar records.

Does the ATO accept a retrospective valuation?

The ATO expects a market valuation to show the valuer’s qualifications, the valuation date, the evidence relied on and the reasoning. A retrospective report from a registered valuer sets out each of those.

Who decides the valuation date?

Your accountant or solicitor. The rule or event that applies to your situation fixes the date, so confirm it before the valuer is briefed.

Rests on
Sales evidence of the time, applied to the property as it stood
Accepted by
The ATO, accountants, executors and solicitors
Have ready
The date or dates to be valued, any old photographs or plans, and your accountant’s details
Turnaround
5 to 8 working days from inspection; urgent timeframes by arrangement